Learn all about phytoplankton, the microscopic marvels of the ocean, with the Marine Institute and its Explorers Education Programme at the 2025 Galway Science and Technology Festival this weekend.
Families are invited to the University of Galway’s Bailey Allen Hall this Sunday 9 November from 10am to 5pm for an exhibition with fun interactive games, films and quizzes that reveal the tools scientists use to study phytoplankton.
Children will discover sea-sparkling species that cause phenomena like bioluminescence blooms along our coastline and learn about the chalk architects that have formed famous land formations.
The event will also launch the new Explorers Phytoplankton Mighty Microscopic Marvels books and educational resources for children.
“Children and parents will get a hands-on look at a hidden microscopic world that lives in the ocean,” said Cushla Dromgool-Regan of the Explorers Education Programme. “Visitors will engage in fun activities using microscopes to see these mighty micro-species ‘supersized.’”
Dr Nóirín Burke of the Explorers Education Programme added: “We look forward to sharing how these tiny marvels sustain the entire marine food web and produce the very oxygen we breathe. We especially encourage teachers to visit our stand to explore how the new phytoplankton module can be used in the classroom to create engaging STEAM projects that support ocean literacy.”
As part of the this year’s festival programme, the Marine Institute’s exhibition ‘The Wild Atlantic – Sea Science’ at Galway City Museum is also offering tours and workshops for primary school groups from 11–21 November. Pupils will uncover the secrets of historic shipwrecks and learn how modern technology helps us map our ocean floor in workshops facilitated by the Marine Institute’s Advanced Mapping Services team.
In workshops delivered by Lindsay Deely of Toodleou Creativity Lab, pupils will create ‘mini worlds’ and explore biodiversity, habitats and the importance of balance in ecosystems. Limited places remain; to book, contact Galway City Museum on 091 532 460.
Free to visitors, the ‘The Wild Atlantic – Sea Science’ exhibition is open year-round and features seabed mapping, amazing scientific discoveries and creatures of the deep. In the Remotely Operated Vehicle Simulator, explore ocean depths like a marine scientist and discover cold-water corals, shipwrecks and a rare shark nursery.
The Explorers Education Programme will also be exhibiting at the Let’s Talk Science Festival 2025 at the Rediscover Centre in Ballymun, Dublin on Saturday (8 November), as well as hosting an online workshop on ‘Exploring Food from the Sea’ next Wednesday 12 November (and as Gaeilge on Thursday November). To make a booking with the Explorers team, visit www.explorers.ie.
